System and method for triggering an event in response to a point-of-sale transaction

ABSTRACT

A method of triggering an event based on occurrence of a POS transaction is provided in which an event processing server receives from a first user device associated with a first account, a first event triggering request. The request includes identification of a desired event to be triggered and first triggering criteria. The desired event is to be initiated by the event processing server upon occurrence of one or more POS transactions collectively meeting the first triggering criteria. The event processing server receives, from a transaction processing server, notification of an occurrence of a merchant POS transaction associated with the first account. The event processing server determines whether the occurrence of the merchant POS transaction results in the first triggering criteria having been met, and, if so initiates the desired event.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This disclosure relates to mobile device and account card interactionswith merchant point-of-sale (POS) devices, and, more particularly to theuse of such interactions to automatically trigger actions requested bythe holder of an account associated with the interacting mobile deviceor account card.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There are many instances where consumers would find it useful to have aparticular action occur immediately after the occurrence of a purchasetransaction or other account-related event. In one example, regularcustomers of certain businesses may find that there are actions thatthey will always initiate upon completion of their business or shoppingexperience. In a particular instance of this, a customer who frequentlydines at an urban restaurant may find that she always contacts the samerideshare service immediately upon paying her bill. In another example,a customer may be aware that a particular action needs to be taken uponcompletion of a purchase, but is concerned that he will forget toinitiate that action.

There are also instances where a group of people would like to have acertain action taken upon completion of a series of separate transactionevents. For example, a group of friends fanning out to shop at differentstores may want to have a rideshare service summoned as soon as theyhave all completed their shopping.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An illustrative aspect of the invention provides an automated method oftriggering an event based on occurrence of a POS transaction. The methodcomprises receiving, by an event processing server over a network from afirst user device associated with a first account, a first eventtriggering request. The request includes identification of a desiredevent to be triggered and first triggering criteria. The desired eventis to be initiated by the event processing server upon occurrence of oneor more POS transactions collectively meeting the first triggeringcriteria. The method further comprises receiving, by the eventprocessing server from a transaction processing server, notification ofan occurrence of a merchant POS transaction associated with the firstaccount, and determining, by the event processing server, whether theoccurrence of the merchant POS transaction results in the firsttriggering criteria having been met. Responsive to a determination thatall triggering criteria have been met, the desired event is initiated.

Another aspect of the invention provides an automated system forprocessing triggered event requests submitted by an account holder. Thesystem comprises a plurality of point of sale POS devices. Each POSdevice is associated with a merchant and a merchant location and isconfigured for carrying out transactions with the account holder andtransmitting resulting transaction information over a network. Thesystem further comprises a mobile interface device associated with atransaction account of the account holder and configured to receiveaction request information from the account holder. Action requestinformation includes identification of a desired action to be triggeredand user-selected triggering criteria. The desired event is to beinitiated upon occurrence of one or more POS transactions collectivelymeeting the triggering criteria. The mobile interface device is furtherconfigured to, and transmit over a network an event triggering requestcomprising the action request information. The system still furthercomprises a transaction processing server in communication with theplurality of POS devices. The transaction processing server beingconfigured to receive transaction information from a transmitting POSdevice, process the transaction, and transmit some or all of thetransaction information to authorized recipients over the network. Thesystem also comprises an event processing server in communication withthe mobile interface device and the transaction processing server viathe network. The event processing server is configured to receive theevent triggering request from the mobile interface device, receive thetransaction information from the transaction processing server, and,using the transaction information, determine whether the triggeringcriteria have been met. The event processing server is furtherconfigured to, responsive to a determination that the triggeringcriteria have been met, initiate the desired action.

Another aspect of the invention provides a mobile interface devicecomprising a data processor, a wireless communication interface incommunication with the data processor and configured for selectivecommunication over a wireless network, a user interface comprising atleast a user input device and a display, and a memory accessible by thedata processor. The memory has stored therein information linking themobile interface device to a transaction account and a triggered actionrequest application. The triggered action request application includesinstructions for the data processor to receive action requestinformation via the user interface. The action request informationincludes identification of a triggering event associated with thetransaction account, triggering criteria, and a desired action to betaken upon occurrence of the triggering event. The triggered actionrequest application also includes instructions for the data processor totransmit, to an event processing server via the wireless communicationinterface, an event triggering request comprising the action requestinformation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention can be more fully understood by reading the followingdetailed description together with the accompanying drawings, in whichlike reference indicators are used to designate like elements, and inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a triggered event processingsystem according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of a user processing deviceaccording to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of actions in a method for requesting a triggeredaccording to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of actions in a method for processing andimplementing a triggered action request according to an embodiment ofthe invention; and

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of actions in a method for processing andimplementing a triggered action request according to an embodiment ofthe invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

While the invention will be described in connection with particularembodiments and manufacturing environments, it will be understood thatthe invention is not limited to these embodiments and environments. Onthe contrary, it is contemplated that various alternatives,modifications and equivalents are included within the spirit and scopeof the invention as described.

The present invention provides methods in which an account holder canrequest that predetermined actions be initiated automatically upon theoccurrence of an event or events. meeting triggering criteria set by theaccount holder. These methods involve the use of an event monitor thatwatches for events on the account holder's account and compares them tothe triggering criteria. Upon determining that the triggering criteriahave been met, the event monitor initiates the predetermined actions.

The methods of the invention can be implemented on or in conjunctionwith any transaction processing or monitoring system. FIG. 1 depicts atriggered event processing system 100 according to an embodiment of theinvention. The system 100 may include various network-enabled computersystems, including, as depicted in FIG. 1 for example, a transactionprocessing server 140, an event processing server 150 with an associateddata storage unit 152, and a service request processing server 190. Thesystem 100 also includes a plurality of mobile user devices 110 and aplurality of merchant POS transaction processing devices 120. All ofthese systems may be or comprise network-enabled processors and any orall may be capable of communication with one another via network 130. Insome embodiments, some components of the system 100 may communicate withone another via a second network in addition to or instead of thenetwork 130.

As referred to herein, a network-enabled processor, computer system ordevice may include, but is not limited to any computer device, orcommunications device including, a server, a network appliance, apersonal computer (PC), a workstation, and a mobile processing devicesuch as a smart phone, smart pad, handheld PC, or personal digitalassistant (PDA). Mobile processing devices may include Near FieldCommunication (NFC) capabilities, which may allow for communication withother devices by touching them together or bringing them into closeproximity.

The network-enabled computer systems used to carry out the transactionscontemplated by the invention may execute one or more softwareapplications to, for example, receive data as input from an entityaccessing the network-enabled computer system, process received data,transmit data over a network, and receive data over a network. The oneor more network-enabled computer systems may also include one or moresoftware applications to notify an account holder based on transactioninformation. It will be understood that the depiction in FIG. 1 is anexample only, and the functions and processes described herein may beperformed by any number of network-enabled computers. It will also beunderstood that where the illustrated system 100 may have only a singleinstance of certain components, multiple instances of these componentsmay be used. The system 100 may also include other devices not depictedin FIG. 1.

In the example embodiments presented herein, an account holder may beany individual or entity that desires to conduct a transaction (whichmay be, but is not limited to a financial transaction) with a merchantusing a transaction account. An account may be held by any place,location, object, entity, or other mechanism for holding money orperforming transactions in any form, including, without limitation,electronic form. An account may be, for example, a credit card account,a prepaid card account, stored value card account, debit card account,check card account, payroll card account, gift card account, prepaidcredit card account, charge card account, checking account, rewardsaccount, line of credit account, credit account, mobile device account,or mobile commerce account. The account holder may be a transactionprocessing entity such as a financial institution, credit card provider,or other entity that offers accounts to customers. An account may or maynot have an associated card, such as, for example, a credit card for acredit account or a debit card for a debit account. The account card maybe associated or affiliated with one or more social networking sites,such as a co-branded credit card.

A transaction account may be associated with a transaction card (e.g., adebit card, credit card, or prepaid account card. Alternatively or inaddition, the transaction account may be associated with an accountholder processing device or simply associated with a unique identifierenterable by the account holder to facilitate a transaction. Theprocessing device may be configured to act as a method of payment at aPOS location using, for example, NFC or any other mobile paymenttechnology.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, an account holder user device 110 maybe any data processing and/or communication device that an accountholder uses to carry out a transaction and/or to receive notificationsfrom the transaction processor 140. In particular embodiments, the userdevice 110 is a mobile interface device such as a smartphone or tablet.The account holder device 110 includes an on-board data processor 111 incommunication with a memory module 113, a user interface 115, and acommunication interface 117. In some embodiments, the user device 110may also include an NFC interface 119. The data processor 111 caninclude a microprocessor and associated processing circuitry, and cancontain additional components, including processors, memories, error andparity/CRC checkers, data encoders, anticollision algorithms,controllers, command decoders, security primitives and tamper-proofinghardware, as necessary to perform the functions described herein. Thememory 113 can be a read-only memory, write-once read-multiple memory orread/write memory, e.g., RAM, ROM and EEPROM, and the user device 110can include one or more of these memories.

The user interface 115 includes a user input mechanism, which can be anydevice for entering information and instructions into the account holderdevice 110, such as a touch-screen, keyboard, mouse, cursor-controldevice, microphone, stylus, or digital camera. The user interface 115may also include a display, which can be any type of device forpresenting visual information such as a computer monitor, a flat paneldisplay, and a mobile device screen, including liquid crystal displays,light-emitting diode displays, plasma panels, and cathode ray tubedisplays.

The communication interface 117 is configured to establish and supportwired or wireless data communication capability for connecting thedevice 110 to the network 130 or other communication network. Thecommunication interface 117 can also be configured to supportcommunication with a short-range wireless communication interface via,for example, Bluetooth®.

The NFC interface 119 is in data communication with the data processor111 and is configured for establishing near field communication with anNFC device. The NFC device may be any device that is or includes an NFCtransmitter, receiver or both. In many cases, the NFC device may be orcomprise an radio-frequency identification (RFID) transmitter. Such adevice may be active or passive and may be in communication with otherRFID-capable devices in the system 100. NFC tags, RFID stickers, and NXPMIFARE stickers, as well as interface points for different frequencyreaders (e.g., readers attuned to non-traditional contactless interfacepoint tunings), non IoT devices, and contactless interface pointsdesigned for different technologies (e.g., sonic readers or X-rayreaders) may be used within system environment 100.

In particular embodiments of the invention, the NFC device may beanother user device 110 having its own NFC interface, a merchant POSdevice 120, or an account transaction card (e.g., a smart card).

The user device 110 may receive and read NFC transmissions via the NFCinterface 119 from the various types of NFC devices in similar manner asdiscussed herein, or as modified in a manner understood by one ofordinary skill in light of the present disclosure. The user device 110may utilize the information gathered from the various NFC devices, forexample, as “location-based IDs,” as triggers to perform a function, orto contact a database for more information.

In various embodiments of the invention, the memory 113 may have storedtherein one or more applications usable by the data processor 111 toconduct and/or monitor transactions associated with a particularaccount. Such transactions may be between an account holder's userdevice 110 and a merchant device 120 or other device over the network130. These account applications may include instructions usable by thedata processor 111 to identify transaction events, store event data inthe memory 113, and communicate event data to the transaction processor140 and/or the event processing server 150. Some applications may alsoinclude instructions relating to receiving and interpretingnotifications and/or instructions from the transaction processor 140.Account-related applications may also include instructions relating touser or device authentication and/or transmission of authenticationinformation to an authentication server.

In particular embodiments, the memory 113 may have stored therein anaccount-related application for requesting that an event processingserver 150 cause a particular event to be initiated upon the occurrenceof one or more triggering events and/or upon the completion of otherevent triggering criteria. This application may include instructions forcausing the user device 110 to prompt for and receive, via the userinterface 115 requested event information and triggering criteria, whichmay then be transmitted to the event processing server 150. Theapplication may also include instructions to receive notification fromthe event processing server 150 relating to the occurrence of triggeringevents, meeting of triggering criteria, or initiation of the triggeredevent.

In some embodiments, the event triggering application may be configuredto provide for event criteria and or triggered events relating to morethan one user on a single account or to multiple users each having theirown account. In such embodiments, the application may be configured forcollaboration between multiple user devices 110, each having theapplication stored therein. The application may, in particular beconfigured to prompt the users to establish communication between theuser devices 110 via their NFC interfaces (e.g., by causing the devices110 to contact one another). Such communication can be used to connectthe devices 110 for the purposes of requesting a triggered event, forcausing account-related events for both devices 110 to be monitored bythe event processing server 150, and for receiving notifications fromthe event processing server 150 relating to triggering and triggeredevents.

Returning now to FIG. 1, a merchant POS device 120 may be any networkenabled processor configured for processing a transaction with anaccount holder. As used herein, a merchant is any entity with which anaccount holder carries out a transaction. This may include, withoutlimitation, any retailer, wholesaler, or bartering entity. A merchantmay have one or more physical locations or may be an online retailer.The merchant POS device 120 may be any on-site network enabled device(e.g., cash register or other POS terminal) or an on-line transactionserver) capable of carrying out the transaction and communicating withthe transaction processor 140. In particular embodiments, the POS deviceincludes an NFC interface usable for communication with the user devices110 and with other account-related transaction devices such as smartcards.

The network 130 may be any form of communication network capable ofenabling communication between the transaction entities and thetransaction monitoring system 100. For example, the network 130 may beone or more of a wireless network, a wired network or any combination ofwireless network and wired network. The network 130 may be or includeone or more of a fiber optics network, a passive optical network, acable network, an Internet network, a satellite network, a wireless LAN,a Global System for Mobile Communication (“GSM”), a PersonalCommunication Service (“PCS”), a Personal Area Network (“PAN”), WirelessApplication Protocol (WAP), Multimedia Messaging Service (MIMS),Enhanced Messaging Service (EMS), Short Message Service (SMS), TimeDivision Multiplexing (TDM) based systems, Code Division Multiple Access(CDMA) based systems, D-AMPS, Wi-Fi, Fixed Wireless Data, IEEE 802.11b,802.15.1, 802.11n and 802.11g or any other wired or wireless network fortransmitting and receiving a data signal. The network 130 may utilizeone or more protocols of one or more network elements to which it iscommunicatively coupled. The network 130 may translate to or from otherprotocols to one or more protocols of network devices. Although thenetwork 20 is depicted as a single network, it will be appreciated thatit may comprise a plurality of interconnected networks, such as, forexample, the Internet, a service provider's network, a cable televisionnetwork, corporate networks, and home networks.

The transaction processing server 140 is an automated data processingsystem configured for selective communication with the user devices 110and the merchant POS devices 120 via the network 130. The transactionprocessing server 140 may receive account transaction information fromany of the user or merchant POS devices. The transaction processingserver 140 may be configured to receive a transaction processing requestfrom a requesting device, process the requested financial or otheraccount transaction, and transmit transaction processing results back tothe requesting device. The transaction processing server 140 may furtherbe configured to store transaction information in a transaction database142 and/or to transmit such information or otherwise make suchinformation available to the event processing server 150.

The event processing server 150 is an automated processing systemconfigured for selective communication with the user devices 110. Theevent processing server 150 is configured, in particular, for receivinga triggered event request from a user device 110 associated with anaccount. As will be discussed in more detail hereafter, such a requestmay include information on a specific event to be initiated upon thefulfilment of specified triggering criteria. The event processing server150 may further be configured to receive authentication information fromthe requesting user device 110. The event processing server 150 may usethis information to authenticate the requesting user device 110 or maytransmit the information to an authentication server (not shown) forauthentication. The event processing server 150 may further beconfigured to store event and triggering criteria in a data storagemodule 152.

The event processing server 150 may also be configured to receivetransaction information from one or more of the transaction processingserver 140, the user devices 110, and the merchant POS devices. Suchtransaction information can be used by the event processing server todetermine whether any or all of the triggering criteria of the triggeredevent request have been met.

The event processing server 150 may also be configured to receivetransaction event information from one or more of the transactionprocessing server 140, the user devices 110, and the merchant POSdevices. Such information can be used by the event processing server 150to determine whether any or all of the triggering criteria of thetriggered event request have been met. Accordingly, when a newtransaction event occurs for the account, the event processing server150 receives information on the transaction event from the transactionprocessing server 140 (or, in some applications, an account holderdevice 110 associated with the account or a merchant device 120). Thisinformation may be in the form of a message that includes an accountidentifier and event information sufficient for determining whether theevent relates to the triggering criteria. The transaction eventinformation may include, for example, one or more of the following:transaction value or purchase amount, transaction date and time,location of the transaction, a merchant or vendor identifier, a merchantdevice identifier, a merchant outlet identifier, type of transaction,and subject matter of the transaction (e.g., goods or servicespurchased).

The event processing server 150 may further be configured to comparetransaction event information to the triggering criteria, and, upondetermination that the triggering criteria have been met, take steps toinitiate the requested event to be triggered. In some embodiments andsome applications, initiating the requested event may includetransmitting instructions to a service request processor 190 via thenetwork 130 or another network. The service request processor 190 may bean automated or non-automated system associated with a service orproduct provider capable of carrying out some or all of the actionsnecessary to execute the requested event.

With reference to FIG. 3, an illustrative method M100 according to anembodiment of the invention provides for the use of a mobile interfacedevice (e.g., a smart phone or tablet) or other user device associatedwith a user account of an account holder to request that an event betriggered upon satisfaction of user-specified triggering criteria. AtS110 of the method M100, the user device receives information on theevent the user wishes to have triggered upon satisfaction of triggeringcriteria. At S120, the user device receives the triggering criteria.Both of these actions S110, S120 may be received from the account holdervia the user interface of the user device. Entry of the eventinformation and the triggering criteria will typically be made by theaccount holder in response to initial prompts upon starting a triggeredrequest application on the user device. In some embodiments, theapplication may prompt for and receive account information or userauthentication information as well.

The event information prompt may include a menu of predefined events oractions that can be selected by the account holder. The events includedon the menu could be based, inter alia, on past usage by the accountholder or based on popular usage across account holders in a particulargeographic area. The types of events that could be requested arelimitless, but may typically include such items as service ortransportation requests (e.g., for product or food delivery, ride orvalet services, etc.), transmission of instructions to smart devices(e.g., appliances, home security systems, home HVAC systems, etc.), andtransmission of notifications to individuals or service providers (e.g.,automatic transmission of a notification to a baby sitter). Depending onthe selection made by the account holder, additional prompts may be usedto elicit entry of information required to initiate the requested event.For example, the user could select from the menu of event options“Request a Ride-Share Pick-Up.” Additional prompts could be used toobtain specific event-related information such as a pick-up location, apick-up time or time delay after the event is triggered, and whether theaccount holder has a preference as to the service provider.

The triggering event criteria may be as simple as the occurrence of asingle transaction event associated with the account. For example, inthe scenario where the requested event is a ride share pick-up, theaccount holder may set the triggering event criteria to be the nextoccurrence of a purchase transaction on the account at a specificrestaurant. This is the type of scenario that could be set up for aone-time, triggered event request for an anticipated meal engagement ata known place or time. The triggering criteria for this simple scenariocan be expanded in many ways. For example, if the exact restaurant isnot known, the criteria could be for the next account transaction at anyof a group of restaurants. The criteria could also include a time or daylimitation, so that a transaction at the selected restaurant occurringafter 7:00 pm on Saturday would trigger the requested event, but atransaction during the lunch hour or on a Tuesday would not.

The triggering criteria prompt may include a menu of potentialtriggering criteria, which may include, for example, the occurrence oftypical account transactions. Depending on the type of transactionselected, the user device may display prompts for additional informationthat would be used to construct, limit or expand the triggeringcriteria. As described in the example above, such information mayinclude, but is not limited to, time, day or date restrictions,specification of a particular vendor or group of vendors, purchase type,transaction value, geographical limitations (e.g., within a defined areasuch as a city or state or within a particular radius of the user deviceat the time of the request). The information can also includelimitations on the particular account-related device used to complete atransaction. For example, the triggering criteria could be limited to atransaction involving the use of the user device. This would eliminatetransactions carrying out using a transaction card.

In some embodiments, triggering events may be limited solely to POStransactions having characteristics meeting the specified triggeringcriteria. In other embodiments, triggering events may be othertransaction types or may be non-transaction-related. For example, theuser device may be configured to transmit data usable by a trackingsystem to determine the location of the user device. Accordingly, thetriggering event may, in some cases, be the disposition of or passage ofthe user device through a predefined location or area.

In some embodiments, the user device application may be configured sothat the account holder can request that the triggered event beinitiated each time the triggering criteria are met, rather than justthe next occurrence.

In some embodiments, an account holder may want the triggering criteriato specify the occurrence of more than one triggering event. In such acase, the account holder would need to provide information for each suchtriggering event. For example, an account holder may know that he isgoing to dinner at a particular restaurant and to shop at a particularstore, but not in which order. The account holder could request anotification (the triggered event) be transmitted to an individual(e.g., a baby sitter) only after occurrence of both a purchasetransaction at the restaurant and a purchase transaction at the store.

In some cases, an account holder may wish the triggering criteria toinclude transactions involving one or more other user devices. Suchdevices may be associated with the same account or may be associatedwith other accounts managed by the same account administrator.Accordingly, the method M100 may optionally include at S130 the actionof determining whether multiple user devices are to be used. Thetriggered event application may be configured to prompt the accountholder to enter a number of user devices to be associated with an eventtriggering request. If multiple user devices are to be associated withthe request, the user device is instructed to display a devicesynchronization request at S132. Device synchronization can then beaccomplished through NFC communication between all participating userdevices and the requesting user device (e.g., by tapping them together).The user device receives synchronization information needed by the eventprocessing server to monitor transactions carried out using theadditional user devices, and, if applicable, send notifications to thesedevices upon the occurrence of transactions meeting the triggeringcriteria.

At S140, the triggered event application causes the user device totransmit an event triggering request to the event processing server. Theevent triggering request includes the desired triggered eventinformation and the triggering criteria. The request may also includeadditional authentication information usable by the event processingserver to authenticate the user and/or the user device. The eventtriggering request may also include information on additional userdevices and associated accounts for which transaction events need to bemonitored in order to determine whether the triggering criteria are met.

In some embodiments, the method M100 may include the action at S150 toreceive and display a notification from the event processing server thatall triggering criteria have been met. The significance of such anotification is greatly increased if more than one user and user deviceis involved. In such a case, all such user devices may receive thenotification, which may, for example, advise all users that thetriggered event has been initiated or will be initiated at a certaintime.

With reference to FIG. 4, an illustrative method M200 according to anembodiment of the invention provides for the use of an event processingserver (e.g., the event processing server 150 of system 100 in FIG. 1)to process and implement a triggered event request from a user device.At S210, a triggered event request is received by the event processingserver over a network from a user device associated with an account. Thetriggered event request includes information on the event the accountholder wishes to have triggered upon satisfaction of triggeringcriteria. The request also includes the triggering criteria. In someembodiments, the method M200 may include receiving, as part of thetriggered event request, user or device authentication information,which the server may use to verify authorization of the user and/or userdevice to make the triggered request. In such embodiments, the serverwill proceed to process the request only upon completion of a positiveverification.

The triggered event request may be received as a single transmissioncomprising all the event information and triggering criteria.Alternatively, the action of receiving the event request may compriseconducting an interactive session in which the event processing servertransmits instructions to the user device to prompt for, receive, andtransmit back to the event processing server the information necessaryto process the request. As part of such a session, the event processingserver may transmit a menu of suggested events or actions that can beselected by the account holder as the event to be triggered. Some or allof the suggested events or actions could be determined by the eventprocessing server based on prior transaction information for theaccount. Alternatively or in addition, the menu may include typicalaccount holder events for all accounts or events that are popular acrossaccounts in a particular geographic area. Requested event types couldinclude, without limitation, service or transportation requests,financial transactions (e.g., funds transfers), product orders,transmission of instructions to smart devices, and transmission ofnotifications to individuals or service providers. Based on the eventtype requested, the event processing server may transmit prompts foradditional information required to initiate the requested event (e.g.,location, time or time delay after the event is triggered, preferredservice provider, etc.).

As previously noted, the triggering event criteria may be the occurrenceof a single transaction event associated with the account. In suchcases, the triggered event request need only include the characteristicsof the triggering transaction. The transaction characteristics, however,may be broad or narrow. For example, the triggering criteria could bethe use of the account for a purchase at any restaurant in ageographical area or it could be limited to a purchase at a specificrestaurant. In addition to geographic or vendor type limitations, thecriteria could also include purchase type, a time or day of the weeklimitation, a value range limitation, a date range limitation, etc.Triggering criteria can also include a limitation on the particularaccount-related device used to complete the transaction.

In some embodiments, the triggering criteria may be based on informationother than transaction information. This could include, for example,events relating to the physical location of the user device. Forexample, the triggering criteria could include the occurrence of theuser device entering a defined geographic area. Triggering criteria mayalso specify that the occurrence of multiple triggering events. Forexample, the triggering criteria may specify a purchase of movie ticketsand a restaurant purchase occurring on the same day. In some cases, suchevents may be required to occur in a particular sequence.

In some embodiments, the triggered event request may specify that thetriggered event be initiated every time the triggering criteria are met,rather than just the next occurrence.

It will be understood that the triggering criteria may require theoccurrence of more than one triggering event. In such a case, the eventprocessing server must receive from the user device information for eachsuch triggering event.

In some embodiments, the triggered event request may provide alternativeevents that would be triggered depending on additional criteria providedby the requester. For example, the request could specify that thetriggered event would be arrangement of open air transportation (e.g., ascooter) if the weather is fair and arrangement of closed vehicletransportation (e.g., automobile ride share) if precipitation isoccurring or expected.

Upon receiving all necessary information to process a triggered eventrequest, the event information and triggering criteria may be stored atS220 by the event processing server in a data storage unit for laterretrieval and use. At S230, monitoring of events associated with theaccount is initiated. This may include notification of the transactionprocessor that information on all transactions associated with theaccount should be transmitted to the event processing server. At S240,the event notification is received that indicates an event related tothe account has occurred. The event notification will typically bereceived by the event processing server from the transaction processor.In some cases, however, the event notification may be received by theevent processing server directly from the user device or from a vendorPOS device. The event notification includes information about thetransaction or other event that can be used to determine if thetriggering criteria have been met. At S250, the event notificationinformation is used by the event processing server to determine if thetriggering criteria have been met. For single transaction criteria, theserver need only determine whether the characteristics of thetransaction fall within the triggering transaction criteria. If not, theserver simply continues to monitor account transactions. If so, theserver ceases to monitor and initiates the triggered action at S270.Optionally, the server may also transmit a notification to the userdevice at S260.

In instances where the triggering criteria specify the occurrence ofmore than one transaction (or other event), the determination of whetherthe triggering criteria have been met may require a two-step inquiry.First, the server would determine whether the transactioncharacteristics meet the criteria for one of the events specified in thetriggering criteria. If it does, the server would then check to see ifthe other specified transactions have previously been deemed to haveoccurred. The occurrence or non-occurrence of specified transactions maybe captured in a stored account event status. If, after the occurrenceof the latest specified transaction, the triggering criteria have notbeen met, the server updates the account event status to reflect theoccurrence of the latest event at S255 and continues to monitor accounttransactions. On the other hand, if, after the occurrence of the latestspecified transaction, the triggering criteria have been met, the methodproceeds with initiation of the triggered action at S270.

As noted above, an account holder may wish the triggering criteria toinclude transactions involving one or more other user devices. Suchdevices may be associated with the same account or may be associatedwith other accounts managed by the same account administrator.Accordingly, the method M200 may, in some embodiments, optionallyinclude the action of determining whether multiple user devices are tobe used. If multiple user devices are to be associated with the request,the method M200 may include transmitting an instruction to the userdevice to synchronize with the user devices. The event processing serverthen receives synchronization information from the requesting userdevice. The synchronization information includes account and user deviceinformation for the additional user devices. In such embodiments, theactions S230, S240, S250 and, if applicable, S255 associated withmonitoring account events and determining when triggering criteria aremet would include monitoring events on all accounts associated with thesynced user devices. Further, the notification action at S260 wouldinclude sending notifications to each of these devices upon meeting thetriggering criteria.

FIG. 5 illustrates an alternative method M300 for processing andimplementing related triggered event requests from multiple user devicesaccording to an embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, anevent processing server receives a first triggered event request from afirst user device associated with a first account at S310 and a secondtriggered event request from a second user device associated with asecond account at S320. The first triggered event request includesinformation on the event a first account holder wishes to have triggeredupon satisfaction of first triggering criteria. In some embodiments, themethod may also include receiving, as part of each triggered eventrequest, user or device authentication information, which the server mayuse to verify authorization of the user and/or user device to make thetriggered request.

The types of event information and triggering criteria for the tworequests are similar to those discussed above and may be received insimilar fashion. In the method M300, however, when the second request isreceived, the second user device has already been synchronized with thefirst user device. Accordingly, the second request makes reference tothe first request so that the event processing server is alerted to thefact that the requested event will only be triggered upon satisfactionof the triggering criteria in both requests. The first request may alsoinclude an indication that a second user device and/or account will beassociated with the requested event and triggering criteria.

The triggering event criteria for each request may be the occurrence ofa single transaction event associated with the account associated withthe request or multiple transaction events.

Upon receiving all necessary information to process the triggered eventrequests, the event information and triggering criteria may be stored atS330 in a data storage unit for later retrieval and use. At S340, theevent processing server initiates monitoring of events associated withthe first account and the second. At S350, the event processing systemreceives an event notification indicating that an event related to oneof the accounts has occurred. At S360, the event notificationinformation is used by the event processing server to determine if alltriggering criteria have been met. This determination may require atwo-step inquiry. First, the server would determine whether thetransaction characteristics meet the criteria for one of the tworequests. If it does, the server would then check to see if the criteriafor the other request had previously been deemed to have been met. Theoccurrence or non-occurrence of specified transactions meeting some orall of the criteria of either request may be captured in a storedaccount event status. If, after the occurrence of the latest specifiedtransaction, the triggering criteria have not been met for bothrequests, the account event status is updated to reflect the occurrenceof the latest event at S365 and the method continues with furthermonitoring of the account transactions. If the criteria associated withone of the accounts is satisfied, monitoring of that account may bestopped. If, after the occurrence of the latest specified transaction,the triggering criteria for both requests have been met, the methodproceeds with transmitting at S370 a notification to both user devicesand initiating the triggered action at S380. In some embodiments, thenotification sent to one or both of the user devices may requestconfirmation that the triggered action should be initiated. In suchembodiments, the action to initiate at S380 would be carried out onlyupon receiving positive confirmation in response to the request.

It will be understood that the method M300 can be expanded to any numberof user devices and requests.

The present invention provides a significant improvement in theautomated functionality of account-associated computing devices andtheir ability to provide services to and enhance convenience for accountholders.

It will be readily understood by those persons skilled in the art thatthe present invention is susceptible to broad utility and application.Many embodiments and adaptations of the present invention other thanthose herein described, as well as many variations, modifications andequivalent arrangements, will be apparent from or reasonably suggestedby the present invention and foregoing description thereof, withoutdeparting from the substance or scope of the invention.

1. An automated method of triggering an event based on occurrence of apoint-of-sale (POS) transaction, the method comprising: receiving, by anevent processing server over a network from a first user deviceassociated with a first account, a first event triggering requestincluding identification of a one-time desired event to be triggered andfirst one-time triggering criteria, the desired one-time event to beinitiated by the event processing server upon occurrence of one or morePOS transactions collectively meeting the first one-time triggeringcriteria; after receiving the first event triggering request from thefirst user device, receiving, by the event processing server from atransaction processing server, notification of an occurrence of amerchant POS transaction associated with the first account; determining,by the event processing server, whether the occurrence of the merchantPOS transaction results in the first one-time triggering criteria havingbeen met, and responsive to a determination that all triggering criteriahave been met, initiating the one-time desired event, wherein the actionof initiating the desired one-time event is carried out responsive onlyto a first occurrence of the first one-time triggering criteria havingbeen met, and wherein the first one-time triggering criteria includesidentification of a specific date of occurrence for the one or more POStransactions.
 2. (canceled)
 3. (canceled)
 4. An automated methodaccording to claim 1 wherein the first one-time triggering criteriaincludes at least one of the set consisting of: an occurrence of amerchant POS transaction at a particular location; an occurrence of amerchant POS transaction involving a particular merchant; and anoccurrence of a merchant POS transaction within a time range specifiedin the first event triggering request.
 5. An automated method accordingto claim 1 further comprising: receiving, by the event processing serverover the network from a second user device associated with a secondaccount, a second event triggering request including identification ofthe first event triggering request and second one-time triggeringcriteria, after receiving the second event triggering request from thesecond user device, receiving, by the event processing server from thetransaction processing server, notification of an occurrence of amerchant POS transaction associated with the second account, anddetermining, by the event processing server whether the occurrence ofthe merchant POS transaction results in the second one-time triggeringcriteria having been met.
 6. An automated method according to claim 5wherein the first one-time triggering criteria consists of an occurrenceof a first triggering POS transaction having characteristics identifiedin the first event triggering request and the second one-time triggeringcriteria consists of an occurrence of a second triggering POStransaction having characteristics identified in the second eventtriggering request.
 7. An automated method according to claim 6 whereinthe action of initiating the one-time desired event is carried out onlyif the first triggering POS transaction and the second triggering POStransaction occur within a specified time interval of one another.
 8. Anautomated method according to claim 1 wherein the first one-timetriggering criteria includes an occurrence of a merchant POS transactioninvolving a particular merchant at a specified location within aspecified time range on the specific date of occurrence.
 9. An automatedmethod according to claim 1 wherein the first one-time triggeringcriteria are user-specified transaction characteristics usable toidentify a specific anticipated POS transaction.
 10. An automated methodaccording to claim 1 wherein the desired action is or includestransportation being provided at a specified location, and the action ofinitiating the desired action includes transmitting a transportationrequest to a transportation provider.
 11. An automated method accordingto claim 1 wherein the desired action is or includes effecting anoperation of a smart machine, and the action of initiating the desiredaction includes transmitting an instruction to the smart machine toeffect the operation.
 12. An automated system for processing triggeredevent requests submitted by an account holder, the system comprising: aplurality of point of sale (POS) devices, each POS device beingassociated with a merchant and a merchant location and being configuredfor carrying out transactions with the account holder and transmittingresulting transaction information over a network; a mobile interfacedevice associated with a transaction account of the account holder andconfigured to receive action request information from the accountholder, the action request information including identification of aspecific one-time desired action to be triggered and user-selectedtriggering criteria, the one-time desired event to be initiated uponoccurrence of one or more POS transactions collectively meeting thetriggering criteria, and transmit over a network an event triggeringrequest comprising the action request information; a transactionprocessing server in communication with the plurality of POS devices,the transaction processing server being configured to receivetransaction information from a transmitting POS device, process thetransaction, and transmit some or all of the transaction information toauthorized recipients over the network, an event processing server incommunication with the mobile interface device and the transactionprocessing server via the network, the event processing server beingconfigured to receive the event triggering request from the mobileinterface device, receive the transaction information from thetransaction processing server, using the transaction information,determine whether the triggering criteria have been met, and responsiveto a determination that the triggering criteria have been met, initiatethe one-time desired action.
 13. An automated system according to claim12 further comprising: a service request processing server associatedwith a service provider, the service request processing server beingconfigured for receiving and facilitating requests for service by theservice provider, wherein the action of the event processing server toinitiate the one-time desired action includes transmitting a servicerequest to the service request processing server.
 14. An automatedsystem according to claim 12 further comprising: at least one smartmachine associated with the account holder, the smart machine being incommunication with the event processing server via the network, whereinthe action of the event processing server to initiate the one-timedesired action includes transmitting an instruction to the smart machineto effect a specified operation.
 15. An automated system according toclaim 12 wherein the triggering criteria includes an occurrence of a POStransaction involving a specified merchant.
 16. An automated systemaccording to claim 12 wherein the triggering criteria includes anoccurrence of a POS transaction at a specified merchant location.
 17. Anautomated system according to claim 12 wherein the triggering criteriaincludes an occurrence of a merchant POS transaction involving aparticular merchant on a specified date within a specified time range.18. A mobile interface device comprising: a data processor; a wirelesscommunication interface in communication with the data processor andconfigured for selective communication over a wireless network; a userinterface comprising at least a user input device and a display; and amemory accessible by the data processor, the memory having storedtherein information linking the mobile interface device to a transactionaccount, and a triggered action request application includinginstructions for the data processor to receive one-time action requestinformation via the user interface, the one-time action requestinformation including identification of a triggering event associatedwith the transaction account, triggering criteria, and a one-timedesired action to be taken upon occurrence of the triggering event; andtransmit, to an event processing server via the wireless communicationinterface, an event triggering request comprising the one-time actionrequest information.
 19. A mobile interface device according to claim 18wherein the triggering event is a POS transaction carried out using apayment device associated with the transaction account and thetriggering criteria includes occurrence of the POS transaction on aspecified date within a specified time range.
 20. A mobile interfacedevice according to claim 18 wherein the memory further has storedtherein a transaction application for carrying out a purchasetransaction with a merchant using the account, and the triggering eventis a POS transaction carried out using the transaction application.